Process and apparatus for treating residue, waste, and the like



Feb. 23, 1937.

L, HERMANNS PROCESS AND- APPARATUSv FOR TREATING RESIDUE, WASTE, AND THE LIKE Filed April 2 7, 1935 e 35 according to the operations. l

I For this purpose the furnace, according to this y L,Patented Feb. 23, 1937 uN1TsD,"sTATEs PATENT 'oFFicE PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING l RESIDUE, WASTE, AND THE LIKE Leonhard Hermanns, Oberhausen-Sterkrade,

Germany, assigner to the firm` Gutehonungshtte Oberhausen Aktiengesellschaft, Oberhausen-Rhineland, Germany Application April-27, 1935, lserial No. 1s,5o9 InGermany. August 27, 1934 zciaims. (01.,110-4) It is known to incinerate or scorify dust or i rubbish in rotary furnaces and thereby destroy .and utilize thel dust or rubbish completely.- It

has, however, been found thatthe drying, and in some circumstances also the incineration, Ainvolves difiiculties, which arise'because ofy the rapidcooling of the furnace wall when a fresh charge of crude rubbish is introduced, and because of the lack of a sulcient supply of air to the rotary furnace.

With the present invention these difllculties and disadvantages are obviated, and aprocess is.

provided whereby the crude rubbish, including all kinds of industrial, domestic orother waste, isdried in a rotary furnace or hearth furnace, is incinerated, scoried and melted. The smelting gases that accrue during the operation are directly utilized for drying purposes, and, with the l addition of air, which is preferably preheated in the regeneratoror recuperator, for incinerating or scorifying. Thus the associated smelting is 'carried out with the minimum essential requirement of additional fuel, to produce a marketable product, such asdipyres., fertilizers, and the like. With this treatment of the-.crude rubbish lt is advantageous to .work it up either while stationary or in motion. Stationaryincineration means an absolutely stationary condition of thel 'incineration supports' for the material, whilemoving incineration. is understood to involve a movement of the support in relation to the material. Now it has been found that for-an optimum capacityjthe movement, for .example the rotation ofthe furnace, andthe position of rest or a rocking movement, must be kept different invention, is divided for the Working or smelting of .the rubbish into two independently movable separate compartments, which communicate with one another through the medium of a stationary but preferably exchangeable central member, to effect the incineration, ,and also, it may be, the slagging of the crude rubbish, in one compartment, by means of the` gases of the material that is being smelted in the otherncompartment. Thus an advantageous utilization of the waste heat, particularly of the smelting gases is obtained,

' Through the said central member the air necessary for the combustion is also supplied to that compartment in which the rubbish is to be incinerated only, and a means is preferably provided on saidcentral member which renders it possible to determine the composition I and temperature of the escaping gases. In this -way the it unnecessary to process is illustrated by way of example in the i operations in the compartment out of which the gases iiow can be observed, and the supply of air in the admission compartment of the gasesl can be regulated.

The operation. of such a furnace permits of "the smelting or treatment of the crude rubbish in the state in which itv accrues, and of a complete utilization of the total heat inside the fur-` accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 shows the plant in longitudinal section on the yline A-A in Figure 3, 1

Figure 2 illustrates a detail, and 25 Figure 3 shows the plant in plan.

The revolving or hearth furnace consists 4^of, twv-independently movable .separate compartments a1 and a2, so thatsin one compartment for instance, incineration can be effected in a o stationary condition, while in the other compartment smeiting can be eected with a rotating or a rocking movement. A central member b uniting the two compartments consists of a tube which is stationary in relation to the two compart-,ments and throughwhich the heating gases can pass from one compartment to the other. Fresh air is also introduced through this central member atc. At the two points marked d there are apertures permitting samples to be obtained for analysis, whereby the existing composition of the `flowing gases can be ascertained. Thus, one may control the operation in the compartment out vof' which the heating gases flow. At ci and e2, coal dust burners'are indicated, which receive their air of combustion'through a pipe f. Ash chambers g are provided for the withdrawal of the heating gases at the appropriate end of the furnace for the purpose of purifying thesaid heating gases. Before the heating gases pass out of the furnace into the chimney h, their residual heat-is utilized for heating the air of combustion, for which purpose. in the example illustrated, a recuperator i is provided. It is of 6 course also possible to utilize the waste heat in a regeneratoihnot shown.

For the direct charging of the furnace with rubbish a grab crane 1c is provided, which takes up the proper quantity of rubbish suicient for a charge to be delivered to thefurnace through a collecting hopper l, provided with a suitable shaking device. For the charging of and withdrawal from. the furnace a travelling crab m is provided,,in which there is provided for the charging operation, not only a cover lifter n, but also a iilling hopper o, which, after the raising of the cover, travels into a position above the furnace compartment to be charged, and enables the crude rubbish from the collecting hopper l to -be chargeddirectly into the appropriate compartment. For the opening of the furnace the crab m is moved into a position above the raised charging aperture of the appropriate compartment. The cover is then seized with a claw-like recess or a recess like a bayonet joint on the gripping rod of the cover lifter n, rotated through a definite angle in the disengaging direction, and raised. In the reverse sequence the cover is put on again and the compartment is closed.

The operation is as follows:

Let is be assumed that in the compartment a1 the rubbish is already in a molten condition, and heat is being supplied 'by the coal-dust burner e1 for the purpose of promoting and maintaining the fluidity of the melt.

'I'hen in the compartment a2, into which a; charge of rubbish has previously been placed, the latter is dried by the smelting flue gases, and is incinerated by the supply of fresh air through the pipe c, and, it may be, slagged. Ilihe heating gases for the drying and the incineration ofthe rubbish in az come directly out of the smelting bath in the compartment-a1 and pass for example, through the compartment a2 and the ash chamber g, into the uptake, and from .there into the regenerator or recuperator i,

where the residual heat is utilized for heating fresh air, after which the said gases pass through the chimney h out into the atmosphere. During this travel a complete utilization of the wasteV heat is attained, and by its-aid a product of marketable consistency is obtained.

When the rubbish in the compartment an is incinerated, and, it may be, already slagged, the melt in the compartment a1 is in the meantime readyand is tapped, whereby thisv compartment is now adapted to receive a. fresh charge of crude rubbish, and by a reversal of the supplementary heating means the operations in the two com partments are now interchanged.

I claim:

1. The process of disposing of residue, waste, and the like, which comprises subjecting the material to be treated simultaneously in two separate compartments to the action of heat, increasing the temperature in one of said compartments to effect smelting of the material therein, conducting the heat gases of the smelt to the -other compartment while, at the same time, passing to said other compartment a supply of fresh air for at least partial incineration therein, tapping the rst compartment to discharge therefrom the molten material, introducing a fresh charge into said first compartment, and then repeating the process in the reverse order.

2. In an apparatus for disposing of residue, Waste and the like, the combination of two separate compartments, a )hollow central member disposed intermediate said compartments constituting a communication therebetween so as to enable the heat gases of the smelt to pass from one compartment to the other, means for supplying air to said compartments through said central member, means at the outer ends of said compartments for supplying heating gases thereto, and means for conducting away said heating gases from the outer ends of said compartments and directing saidgases'in heat-exchange relation to the air supplied to said compartments, whereby the apparatus is adapted to beoperated continuously by heating one of the compartments to eifect smelting of material therein, by utilizing hot gases from said compartment, mixed with air, to effect at least partial incineration of material in the other compartment, by drawing oil smelted material from the rst compartment and introducing a fresh charge of material therein, and by repeating the operation in reverse order.

LEONHARD HERMANN S. 

